Nothing Is What It Seems
by sanestinsanepersonever
Summary: Sequel to Barely Scratched The Surface.
1. Blip

The Hazy White Walls of A Hospital

Make Me Nauseous.

* * *

Blip. Blip. Blip. DripBlip. Blip. Blip.

Her body ached. Mostly, it was her head that was hurting. She didn't know why. All she could remember was…

She sat up, immediately regretting it. Her head was dizzy and she had begun to gag, eventually vomiting whatever was in her system onto the thin white blankets that covered her lap. After that was over and done with, the brunette shifted her gaze to her arms. IV, she had IV in her arms.

For some reason or another, she just didn't like that. IV's meant hospitals, that much she remembered. Hospitals were… bad. Very bad. She had to get away. Had to. She began to tear the IV from her arm, soon followed was anything else attached to her, an oxygen hose that went to her nose and the thing on her finger that told her heartbeat. When that went off, a long steady Bliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii- began to ring.

Nurses swarmed the room, looking relieved and annoyed to find her, fine and dandy, other that completely unhooked and covered in vomit. A nurse, Betty from her nametag, took over and shoo'ed the others away.

After everything was cleaned up and the patient was calmed down, the nurse sat on the bed, taking the patient's hand with her own, "Hi, sweetie. I'm Betty-"

"Wh-where? Wh-who…?"

"You're in Malibu Central Hospital, and I already told you, sweetie, I'm Betty," A strained smile showed that she'd been working long hours, perhaps she was nearing the end of her patience.

"No-not… you.." Her voice sounded like a frog, it kept breaking. She frowned, "Me? Who.. am I?"

Betty sighed, letting her hand go. "The ID you had on you said Alyse Morrison."

Alyse Morrison? Yes… That man… he had said that was her name. "Where did he go?!" Sudden movement and she felt dizzy again. The nurse gently pushed her back to lay down.

"Where did who go, Alyse?"

"I… don't remember…" She rubbed her hands against her face, in annoyance. "He said… his…. Lackey hit me, must've hurt my head… It's so _fuzzy_." Now Betty had gotten a chart and was marking this down. "Something… to do with my legs?" Her hands flew from her face, to her legs, as if to check and make sure they were still there, wiggling her toes for good measure. It seemed rather important that she did so.

Betty looked through the chair after hearing the leg comment, quirking a brow, "It says here your legs use to be paralyzed, no mention of how you're able to move them now…" Odd. She was going to have to go to the doctor about this. Maybe that explained the scars on her legs? Had this girl discovered how to repair her paralysis? If so, she would definitely have to make a few calls…

"All right, Alyse, I have to go check in on something, but if you need anything, just press the call button right here," She reached other and pointed at the button, Alyse nodded. "And someone will be in to help you. Now, don't mess with the IV's anymore. I'll be back in a little bit."

The young woman tipped her head back, staring at the white ceiling, a chilling feeling overcoming her. She ignored it, opting not to think about it and instead ponder over… why had she lost her memories. What had she done that would make someone try and extract information from her by such… forceful means? All these thoughts made her strangely sleepy. She just wanted to sleep….

She had fallen asleep, apparently, the nurse walking in with a blondish-orange haired woman waking her up. They both paused, as if waiting for someone else. Oh, they had been. A man walked in shortly after them, wearing a nice suit, though the rest of him looked sort of rough. He had facial hair, a goatee and some 5 o'clock shadow, he wore sunglasses that were sloped down his nose, and his hair was in a state of disarray. He looked as if he didn't need to present himself, but did so anyway.

"Hello, I'm Tony Stark," A pause, then brow quirk. He kept going, "Owner of the widely known Stark Industries?" Nothing. A blank stare. "Iron Man?"

She stifled a laugh, her hand covering her mouth, "Sounds like a bad porno."

The woman, not the nurse, smiled quietly, before stepping in, "Unfortunately, Mister Stark here wasn't informed of your current condition, so excuse him while he goes to nurse his ego." Stark shot her a look.

"Miss Potts, what are you talking about?"

"… I'd like to know my condition too, if you wouldn't mind," Alyse crossed her arms as best she could with a needle piercing her skin. Sure, she couldn't remember who she was or what she did prior to her, she figured, ass beating by that strange guy with pretty blue eyes, but she knew the basics. Math, science (this she felt a bit cocky about), etc. She also knew that hospitals weren't to give out patient information without consent, unless the family was involved. Hey, her throat was feeling better.

The nurse chose this time to step in, before Miss Potts could do her job for her, "Sorry, sweetie, I completely forgot to tell you… We can't find much physically wrong, excluding bruising around your shoulder and wrists and a wound on your head, that seems to have contributed to your memory loss. We're unsure as to how long it'll be until your memory returns to you… if at all. Your speech seems to be doing very well, later we'll have you do a few tests to see what else you remember, other than your past." Alyse's head hit the pillow, her eyes shutting. Okay, so, she couldn't remember anything about herself, but she could remember the things she learned throughout her life? How screwed up was that!

"Can we get back to whatever we're doing…?" The man's voice. Stark.. She could feel the wrinkle that formed on her nose when she grimaced.

"Damnit, I'm apparently in this situation because of whatever it is you wanted, so you expect me, if I do recall how it was done, to tell _you_?" She snorted, her eyes opening to hopefully lock gazes with those eyes hidden behind sunglasses. He seemed to get angry, his head shifting towards Miss Potts. Potts nodded faintly.

"Look, Miss Morrison…" She went into a little spiel about how this would benefit the world and how she would be rewarded handsomely if she were to tell them how she had managed to remove the 'problem' from her legs. Warily, Alyse agreed. A few days later she was released, given vitamins and other things to take. Stark, or should she say Pepper, set up a comfy little place to stay at, her accounts mysteriously vanishing.

Work began a week after she 'moved' in. She would be taken to Stark's place of work, to some lab, and would write whatever she could remember. That was the hard part. Yes, she remembered the processes, but… there were several processes for this surgery in her head. Obviously she had created several scenarios or something and chose the best one and ended up lucky.

Each time she had written a complete process down, Stark would take it and she would be taken to her place and was left alone for the next day or so. Then she'd be called and brought back. Rinse, repeat.

Error: Try Again.

She blinked at that thought, caught in the middle of writing out another process out. She shoved the pen down onto the tabletop. Stark entered the room minutes later, "Done?"

"No."

He paused, frowning, "No?"

"No. I refuse. I could be doing funner things, better things. Finding out who I am, Stark. I refuse to write another word unless you take me out," her arms crossed as she turned on her stool, legs crossing as well. She gave him a hard stare. He frowned.

"But.."

"No buts. I want to go to one of those… karaoke joints!" Her hands clapped together, finalizing the whole thing. Stark seemed to be pouting, but then put on his suave face, nodding.

"A date then?"

"No. Pfft. Man-slut. We need Pepper too, you work her too much," Alyse hopped off of the stool, wiping her hands over her pants. Pants, she never wore skirts, for obvious reasons… That, and they felt wrong. She had actually tried to wear one once, but… she ended up angrily shouting at anyone who stared too long.

Stark agreed, which surprised her, but she was happy for it. They called a taxi and Alyse rode to her place to get an outfit better than a T-shirt and jeans.

Later that day, Stark rode up in one of his vehicles, she never knew cars, Pepper sitting beside him. Stark ended up squished in the middle, not that he seemed to mind too terribly. They arrived at a place Alyse hadn't been expecting. She had been waiting to see some halfway decent building that had individual rooms for the people so sing in. No, this was set up in a ritzier manner, and looked more like open mic night.

They sat for a while in a table near the middle, ordered drinks, Alyse getting Pepsi, not paying any mind to whatever the other two got. Her eyes lit up, watching people pour their songs into lyrics that weren't meant for them to sing. Someone announced they were going to be singing a song called 'Going Down in Flames'.

The light in her eyes seemed to disappear for a moment, coming back only after Pepper had begun to shake her.

"Are you alright, Alyse?" A concerned look flashed across the orangish-blonde haired girl's eyes, locking gazes with the brunette, who's red roots were showing. Alyse shook her head, then smiled.

"Sorry, was thinking… I wanna go next. Save my seat!" A quick change of subject and then she was gone, nearing the stage.

After a few moments, she was introduced and handed the mic. "Hey, everyone.. I'm going to be singing a slightly altered version of a song from the movie Repo! The Genetic Opera. It's called 'Didn't Know I'd Love You This Much'. Thank you." The polite clapping occurred here, hoping the alterations weren't horrible.

"Please be still, there is nothing you need say, it can wait..."

Everyone quieted down a moment, staring towards the stage. Girl didn't have a spectacular voice, but they wanted to listen now that they'd heard her.

Stark and Pepper blinked at each other, Stark shrugging, Pepper smiling. They got comfortable and watched the show.

Alyse's eyes shut, "Sometimes I wanted to cry, when the people on TV were not quite the way we were, somehow I guess I just knew…" She swayed under the bright light directed at her.

"But I didn't know I'd love you so much… Didn't know I'd love you so much, didn't know I'd love you so much, but I do." She turned her head to the side, the sad tune flowing out from the speakers.

She took a breath, "Sometimes I'd stay up all night, wishing to God that I knew who you were, but sometimes it's not enough time..."

Her gaze met the crowd's, eyes twinkling in the lights, "But I didn't know I'd love you so much, didn't know I'd love you so much… didn't know I'd love you so much, but I do." The lights faded slightly, clapping commenced. Yes, the song was short, but it would be awkward without a male partner to sing with. She bowed slightly and began to walk back towards her seat.

The lights were still dark when a set of long fingers wrapped around her upper arm, it's match slipping over her lips. Warm breath tickled her ear as someone whispered in her ear, "If you make a fuss, I'll kill everybody in this room…" She nodded against his hand, which released her mouth. The voice… familiar. Alyse tried to catch a glimpse of his face, but he shoved her forward, making the duo head quickly towards the door.

The man at the door quirked a brow at the odd 'couple'. Perhaps it was rare for a girl that went into a place with Tony Stark to come out with another man. She waved a hand at him, giving him a light smile, walking steadily. She wouldn't let this crazy kill anyone else. What did he even want with her…? Was it what Stark had located her for? Seriously, this was getting old, quickly.

A block or so down from the door, Alyse ripped her arm from the man, turning, lips parting as if to say something, but she froze. It was… Him! He had… before the hospital.

Oh gods, her head hurt. Her hands moved to her head as she took a few steps away from him, eyes watching him warily.

"Rae, is that how you greet someone who saved you from sudden death?" A cocky smirk played on his lips.

Now he was confusing her. And her head was throbbing all the more. "Rae?... I'm Alyse." Rae… fit better though felt better. Felt _right_.

System Error… System... Error…

Shutting Down.

* * *

Woo?

First chapter of the Sequel, and yes, this is a sequel, if you didn't already know that.

Obviously, I don't own any Batman characters or Iron Man characters, so no suing~! –Fingerwaggle. -


	2. Lost Or Found

Lost In Your Head,

Is It Too Late To Be Found?

* * *

Neither Tony or Pepper were all too concerned when Alyse hadn't shown up right away, figuring that maybe the drinks she had drank had gotten to her and she needed to answer nature's call. After a while, Tony's watch said ten minutes, they began to worry.

After looking around the place, Tony asked the man watching the door if he had seen Alyse leave. Apparently, he had. With someone else. A tall man, very pretty (At this the bouncer blushed), lanky, with dark brown mussed hair and stunning blue eyes (Blushing again!).

The vague description had brought an image to mind, a name too, a name Tony did not think would show up in this part of the country. He had to get back to his lab, fast, if his assumption was correct. There were phone calls to be made, costumes to be donned, and a search to be had. Pepper was informed on the way back to Stark's home, very displeased as well, she pulled out a cell phone and began to dial.

* * *

A song floated through the vehicle, the origin coming from Rae's pants, _'Save some face, it's the only one you've got, change you're ways while you're young… Boy, one day you'll be a man… Oh girl, he'll help you understand…'_

Jonathan groaned, not wanting to have the girl come out of the self-induced-unconscious-state. He climbed from the front seat, giving Harold a look.

'_Smile like you mean it… Smile like you mean it-'_ Rae lets out a noise as Jonathan went through her pocket, Jonathan's face semi-red. He checked the screen, seeing 'Pepper'. He flipped it open, smirking.

"Alyse!! Are you all right? Tony is-"

"Rae's unconscious at the moment… But don't worry, she's in perfect health," An added thought, "For now." He could practically hear the woman, Pepper, steaming through the phone.

"… I do not know who this Rae person is, but you have Alyse, and I warn you, we do not negotiate with kidnappers."

His eyes narrowed, "Pepper, I did not kidnap Rae, and yes, it is Rae, not Alyse, I'm… taking her _home_." Harold swerved, causing Jonathan to curse. He shot the man a look, Harold shrugging lightly.

"Where do you intend to take Al-… Rae?"

"I already told you, _home_."

Pepper sighed on the other end. A click signaled the end of the conversation. Jonathan crawled to the front again, gazing through the phone's contents. Pictures, he assumed Pepper was the orange-blonde woman, but who was the man? Aah, Tony Stark. He occasionally hung out with Bruce Wayne and they made papers with their nightly escapades. She was out with a _playboy_ like Stark?! Scarecrow had a similar reaction, though many four-letter words were used.

He calmed himself, telling himself that she had no idea who she was, so it wasn't as bad as… as… Damnit, he was still rather pissed. Geez, Scarecrow's possessiveness was growing on him. And it was only that, really… Really. He had convinced himself, during the time that he and Rae had been apart, that he only found interest in Rae because she was fun to toy with, to play with, he wanted to make her scream, not because of Scarecrow, not because she was… he was… Ugh. Exactly!

A light groan came behind him after a while, Jonathan gazing back to check on Rae…

* * *

Gods, her head hurt. Wiggling her toes, she kept her eyes shut, trying to remember whatever she could. Hospital, Pepper, Stark… song… Creeper! She sat up too quickly, a lightheaded sensation tightening around her skull. A hand pressed to her forehead, her eyes opened, gazing down at her own two hands, not on her forehead. Eyes snapped up, meeting insanely pretty blue hues hidden behind glasses. It was him!

She moved back as far as she could, bumping into a crate that was pressed against the wall inside of the van. He frowned at the reaction. Then smirked.

"Scream for me," He leaned forward, she moved again, this time to the side, until she was stuck in a corner, him cornering her. His face came in close, eyes narrowing, his lips still curled into a smirk. "Do it. Scream."

Something inside of Alyse was yelling 'No! Don't do it! Don't give in to that bastard!'. Whatever it was, it convinced her to shake her head, shutting her eyes. When she opened her eyes again, she gave him a dark look. This seemed to surprise him, his eyelids parting further.

"I won't scream for you."

This seemed to please him, a hand moving to brush against her cheek, "Rae-"

"I'm not Rae!" She knocked his hand away from her, trying to make herself smaller in the corner.

He frowned, rubbing at his hand. He shook his head. "I'll have to remind you the old fashioned way, I guess… Harold, mask!" Harold held a mask out with one hand, the other still on the steering wheel. "Don't forget your own." Harold nodded, pulling something over his mouth.

She frowned, not liking this one bit. That little voice was yelling for her to cover her mouth, before-

He pulled the mask on and fired something into her face. She should have listened to that damned voice. Her hands flew to her mouth, but it was too late, she had already taken enough of a breath of the toxin. The effects soon began to start. Maggots and rats, at her legs. There. Legs. Was too familiar. Oh gods the rats!

She froze, memories slipping into her mind. He'd done this before, he had! They were at a hospital… Scream. He wanted her to scream. He did. Back then too. Would he take her back if she did? She couldn't. Legs. Legs. Maggots, maggots, rats. Legs. Legs. Tearing at the flesh. Batman. She remembered Batman. He had something that fixed this. Legs. Legs. Her eyes narrowed. It wasn't real. Not real. Couldn't be real. Crane used toxin, it was a hallu-… Crane. Crane! That… That bastard!

Fuzzy memories began to clear up, not all, but a lot. Her name… was Rae. Not Alyse. That name.. wasn't real. And Crane, he had… saved her, but then he had…

That son of a bitch!

Even in the fog of her delusions, she could still tell where Crane was, and now she was too pissed to care. All she cared about at that very moment was her hands around that damnedable throat of his. A quick jerk from the van and Crane was on top. A surge of pain and more memories surfaced. Her hands recoiled, fingers pressing to her head.

God damnit, she needed… stay awake… Couldn't…

She had paid no attention to Crane, so as she grew drowsier, she was shocked when he spoke, his mouth right beside her ear, so close she could feel his breath.

"Just go to sleep, all right? You can be angry at me later, when _we're home_."

* * *

I thought that was a good way to end it, so there.

Neenerpants.

Sorry it took so long. Life's getting in the way and whatnot.

Graduations coming soon! That means more time for fic-writing, though it could eventually mean less time, or about the same amount as now, 'cause of work/college.

Yup.

Comments are lovely and keep me warm at night.


	3. Confrontation

The Best Way to Win a Fight,

Is to Cheat.

* * *

Crane was glad that they hit the highway, interstate, whatever they were called. It would be harder to track… Unless… His eyes shifted to the phone that had been left on the floor, forgotten. He wanted to hit himself in the forehead. If this phone was given to Rae from Tony Stark… Great. This was a good of time as any. He rolled down the window and tossed it.

Ha, take that, possible tracking device!

What Crane didn't know was that he was already too late. He was catapulted, along with Rae, forward, hitting the back of the passenger seat, Rae colliding with him, his arms tightening around her.

"What the hell, asshole?!" Scarecrow's words seeped out of Crane's mouth, Harold tried to get the worlds out, but something else cut in.

"Release Alyse and I'll think about not giving you to Batman." Blue eyes jerked to meet a suit of armor, unfitting in today's society, or not, he had not seen the insides of the contraption, though he knew what the news had released. Yes, this was the colossus of metal known as Iron Man, Tony Stark. He tugged his mask in place, pondering whether or not the man had installed an air filter, or if it was designed to filter out certain chemicals.

This might give him a chance to show Tony Stark that there were many different versions of Fear toxin that might not be entered into his suit's computers… That damned Batman kept making antidotes to the ones he's already created.

Or…

He grinned viciously, blue eyes becoming very cold, darker even.

"Hey, ass, go stall Suit over there," Scarecrow didn't even look at Harold for the man to begin moving, a bit of blood slipping down the side of his face. Had Scarecrow cared to look, which he wouldn't, but Jonny was noting it anyway, he would've seen the front was mostly shoved in, the furthest part pushed in was almost directly between the seats, where a center console should have been.

Shots were being fired. Ha! His henchy brought a toy! Good puppy, he'd deserve a treat later. He gazed at the woman that was in his arms, his grin growing larger. Too bad he didn't have any time to play with her, not that it'd be much fun with her conked out and such, but still!

"You owe me, Jonny!" With those words, Scarecrow leapt from what was left of the van, leaving Rae inside, doors locked, not like that would stop Iron Man. Rae was _HIS_. _Not_ Iron Man's.

"Hey, metal-butt!" _'You have such a way with words…' _"Let's _go_!" Now, Jonathan wasn't much of a fighter… but Scarecrow on the other hand? Limbs seemed to hit everywhere, effecting a lot less than they normally would, seeing as Stark was underneath who knows how many pounds of metal and wires.

For some reason or another, Stark wasn't using his real weapons that could take Scarecrow out within seconds, perhaps Pepper had told him not too?

Scarecrow/Jonathan didn't know.

All Scarecrow cared about at that moment was that he was fighting.

* * *

A hand was shaking her awake. She groaned. One did not wake her up from a Shut Down. It just _wasn't_ done. Her eyes fluttered open. Orange-blonde hair. Pepper!

Oh gods. No. It was Pepper… And she was still somewhat under the effects of the Toxin! Damnit, Crane.

"Alyse, wake up! We have to get you out of here while Tony's distracting those men," A hurried whisper. Oh the poor woman. She tried to force a smile at Pepper, her eyes now vacant in Rae's vision. Oh gods. She doubted the toxin would harm the woman, it having… aired out enough.

Rae shoved herself up, groaning. She was not supposed to wake up after a system shut down and this was why. Her head felt all confused and her body felt disoriented. Or vice versa, if it really mattered. Her hand pressed to her temple, eyes focusing on the woman more as words spewed from her mouth, Rae squinting, as if that'd help her to comprehend. Odd, how she was able to hear the woman clearly a few moments ago. Away? But… She had to go home! If she went home, she'd get to yell at Crane for his stupidity…

Wait, was that why Pepper wanted her to run? Crane was still around? Tony.. Distracting. Things began to click in her mind, eyes narrowing faintly.

"We'll take you to a doctor later, first we have to get away, Alyse!" Pepper grabbed her hand and began to pull.

Rae resisted, eyes spewing daggers at the woman. It wasn't Pepper's fault, she had been nice over the time they had shared, but Rae was back and she was pissed. She pulled her arm away from Pepper's, the woman turning to give her a confused look.

"Alyse, we have to go no-"

"Drop it, Pepper," Cold. "I'm tired, irritated, and not in the _mood_!" Rae began to slip out of the remains of the van, standing, eyes locking with Pepper's. "And get it _right_. I'm Rae. Not Alyse." Pepper's eyes widened. Had Pepper heard of her? Did they know who she was? Who Crane was? If so, why not worry earlier? Was it because she couldn't remember? The pounding in her head seemed to worsen. Great.

"Aly-… Rae, please, be reasonable-"

"Reasonable? Sweetheart, I'm certifiably insane!" A laugh. Oh gods, now she was feeling bad. Why was she doing this to Pepper? Pepper had been nice, put up with her when she wasn't in the best of moods, even if it wasn't… her. But still! This was how she was acting. She knew her anger was meant for Crane, not for Pepper, so why take it out on Pepper? Oh yes, insane, forgot. Or maybe she just didn't want the woman to feel bad for her, to want to find her…? No, that was too... sane sounding. "Doll, what you need to do right now is…"

An explosion never let her finish that sentence. Rae's attention was turned toward the front of the van's remains, a large hole now in what use to be concrete. For a few moments, it was quiet.

"J-Jonathan!" Oh gods _Jonathan_! She stumbled forth, a crazy laugh making her pause at the front of the destroyed vehicle, hand resting on the warm, bent hood. Jonathan was okay, so was Harold. Harold was just… knocked out. Or he looked like it.

Jonathan didn't even glance her way, just leapt forth as Stark, in his Iron Man uniform. Fists flew, limbs flew, the suit would fly just out of distance and Jonathan would be right on him. The battle got further away, then nearer. Rae could only watch until…

* * *

Scarecrow was having _fun_. Too bad he couldn't blow the guy's head off with his own equipment.

'_He probably has some guard set against that. For protection.' _Scarecrow scowled at Jonathan's assumption. He was probably right. Bastard.

Jonathan was enough of a distraction for Scarecrow to turn, a fist coming very close, very fast. Yeah, he'd been hit a few (lot) times during this, but not to the face. Craaa-

Crunch?

Brown hair with dark red roots. A pale hand grasping red and yellow metal. The pale hand looked… off.

'_Did she just…?'

* * *

_

God DAMN that hurt. A lot. And was throbbing.

She bit her lip, forcing a smirk. "Sorry, Stark, but you're not screwing with my property, got it? There's one person allowed to beat the snot out of him and get away with it, and that's _not_ you." She turned her head, towards Jonathan, "Get the girl."

"Don't you touch he-"

"Baby, we're calling the shots… Okay?" She couldn't tell, but Stark was frowning behind his mask. "There are more of us than you, but I'm doubting that's a problem normally, right?… I doubt you really want to risk me losing my memory again, and I highly doubt you really want to shoot at Jonathan… Who knows how many… canisters of his toxin are on him or in the van, still untouched, ready to explode with the help of a stray bullet or explosion?" At this point, Harold was getting off of the ground. "Harold! Aim towards the van, 'kay?"

He gave her a confused look, but nodded, aiming at the van. Now she felt bad, peeking at a bit of blood that slid down the side of his face. Poor Harold. She'd have to make Jonathan give the man extra for this job. Her eyes closed for a second, removing her hand from his, nursing it slightly. At least the pain helped her to focus, away from the delusions of the toxin, which wasn't as bad as it was last time… Different strain, weaker strain? Who knew.

"Well, Stark?" Would he let Pepper be endangered because of his decision? She hoped not. "Here's the choice, you try and go after me or Crane or Harold and Harold let's a bullet loose. You could try to counter it… But now Crane has Pepper." He did, the woman having come up moments after Rae caught Stark's punch, not sure whether to run or to stay. Jonathan got to her before she could choose wisely. Poor girl. "You really want to risk it? Or… You could take her? First, though, I suggest you let us go, okay?" A smile. A devious smile. A smile that could match that of the devil's.

Stark went silent for a few minutes, before nodding his head lightly. "Good… You made a wise choice!" Another smile. "And please don't do the whole following thing, 'kay? I remember where you live, man-slut." A warning, but it was ended with a warm smile. It was a threat, true, but even if she had her memories back, he was still her little man-slut, and calling him that was her way of telling him.

Her eyes shifted to the sky for a moment, curious as to where the news helicopter was or the police helicopter? Wasn't Iron Man a big deal? Maybe he had warned them in advance, about the toxin and the crazies? Who knew. She paused, "You know what? How about this? Me, Crane, and Harold will just…"

Her eyes drifted behind them. Yes, there were vehicles, they were on an interstate. They had all stopped when they had seen Iron Man duking it out. The roads were divided by a Medium, so perhaps the backup of cars not wanting to pass was the reason there were no cops on the scene yet. Good. Even better. She left Stark's side, nearing the cars. Did the riders think she was apart of the bad guys? Probably, after what occurred. The nearest car wasn't old but it wasn't new. It blended well.

She knocked on the driver's window with her good hand, smiling. They rolled it down a little bit.

"Get the fuck out of the car or I'll feed you to a cannibal, stir-fried." The man complied, not wanting to be apart of this whole fiasco.

She whistles.

The guys pause for a few moments, not taking their eyes off of their 'targets', before moving towards Rae, as the driver took off running. Scarecrow was first to make it to the car, getting into the passenger's seat. Harold got into the driver seat. Rae was in the back. She rolled down the window, watching Pepper near Stark in his gold-red suited glory, neither seeming to know what to do. She waved with her good hand, before the car flew past, then she rolled up the window.

Scarecrow was no longer antsy, maybe he was Jonny again? She didn't care. She wasn't suppose to be awake, so she gave a quiet warning to the two other bodies in the car.

"Wake me up before we get to Gotham and I'll end you."

Jonathan turned, and yes, it was Jonathan, from the look in his eyes, frowning at her. "I should look at your hand..."

"When we get to Gotham! Now… System shut down, in three… two…"

One never escaped her lips. Darkness.

* * *

Bleh, I wish I had a different way that the confrontation between Scarecrow-Stark-Rae would have worked out, but I couldn't wrap my head around it. Poor Rae broke her hand.

Anyway, sorry for taking so long! I had some school stuff to get done, but now I've graduated!… Which means I have to look for a job now. Grand.

Anyway. Yeah, working on this story. I don't think this one will be as long as the last one, seeing as I hadn't really planned this story out for this setting and had originally planned to end the first story a few chapters earlier than it was.

Merf.

I think I have a basic plot to it, but if you have any ideas, I wouldn't mind hearing 'em, loves. Hearing about possible ideas actually helps, in a weird way. I might not use the idea given, but it'll help to inspire a completely new idea, and hopefully that'll make me wanna write more!

Also, I know this chapter is kinda made of fail, so you don't really have to tell me. Flames are used to warm my feet on a chilly summer night, comments make me warm and fuzzy inside.

Much love,

T.


	4. Because For Her

Because For Her,

It's All That's There.

* * *

Rae was out and seemed to be out for a while, so Jonathan decided, while she slept, he would look at her hand. At first, he was gentle, lightly touching the flesh. Rae had winced from the contact, but did not stir much more than that. He was glad. Perhaps her 'shut down' wouldn't allow her to wake up? He'd have to ask her about that later. The human mind was a wondrous thing, he noted, as he searched for something to wrap the girl's hand up in.

Unfortunately, he couldn't find anything, and he was not about to tear his own clothing like he'd seen in the movies to bandage her hand. He did have his limits, and even though his attire had been worn down by the battle, he would not allow himself to ruin the suit further. It would have been rather difficult, anyway, seeing as he was in the front seat while she was in the back, and being turned as such an angle would no doubt draw attention from the other cars that appeared to be coming from the off-ramps of crossing roads and all that. He groaned quietly, leaning back in his seat, keeping an eye on Rae through the rear-view mirror.

He let his mind wander, ignoring the minor commentary from Scarecrow, as he thought about Rae's recent living conditions and new… relationships. Tony Stark, that Miss Pepper. Had she made any other relations whilst she was away from him? What, exactly, had she been doing with Stark anyway? His thoughts flitted to the documents he had set up for her… If he recalled correctly, he hadn't changed the handicapped status Rae formerly had. Grand. Perhaps that was the reason? But he had found them in a Karaoke club, Rae singing a song about not knowing she loved someone so much…

That forced his anger to boil slightly. Had she been singing to anyone specific, or has she just liked that song? It drove him wild, on the inside, these thoughts and he had them all the way to Gotham…

* * *

Roads had bumps, cars ran over these bumps. When one lived in a place long enough, they were able to recognize their general location based off of the bumps.

Or, at least, that was going through Rae's head as she found herself waking in the backseat of the car she had commandeered, eyes searching through the front window, spying the familiar Gotham buildings. A faint snicker escaped her, as she curled in the backseat, clutching her hand tightly to her. She truly had to be insane to want to keep coming back to the place that would, no doubt, lock her back up in a mental facility, that she would break out of and repeat the cycle.

Going to Arkham was like having a period, she found herself thinking, no one liked it when it happened, they didn't want it to happen, but eventually, one escaped the tortures of the it. Eventually, they would return to Arkham, and the cycle would begin again. Yup, like a period. A rather gross comparison, but a comparison nonetheless.

A glance up and she noted that blue eyes were watching her through the rear-view mirror. Strange, no quips about… well, anything. The car was oddly quiet, if one excluded the radio station that was belting out some sort of horrid music sang by a teen star. Her nose scrunched at the noise. She twitched her fingers, regretting it.

"I'll fix you up once we get to my base," She could hear the smirk in his damn voice. Rae forced herself to sit up, grumbling to herself. The ride was a quiet one. Good, she needed time to think.

What was she going to do in Gotham? She couldn't just walk about like nothing happened. Wayne Enterprises was a well-known company, sure, no one had been harmed, but there had been a threat of danger. Employees would, no doubt, know what she looked like, and Wayne Enterprises had a lot of employees, and the employees had friends and family who might know as well. She smiled to herself, she was a Rouge now, if someone could recognize her on the street and turn her in. Not that the thought hadn't crossed her mind before, but still. There were some small-time villains, then there were the Rouges. And here she thought she would have to go through some sort of initiation ceremony, her thoughts dripped with sarcasm.

Her mind went blank as she stared out the window, watching the scenery pass. And of course, something had to happen. Because her day hadn't been screwed enough as it was. Though… it was morning now, and Harold was probably tired, if not a bit concussed. It was partly her fault, then, when red and blue lights began to flash behind the vehicle. Harold glanced to Crane, who just waved his hand. They pulled over to the side of the street, the police car pulling up behind them.

A few moments later, there was a tap at the window. Harold rolled it down. "Sir, do you know why I pulled you over today?"

Rae held herself back from saying, 'Well, I dunno ociffer, could it be the fact that he's driving two loonies around Gotham? Yeah, Scarecrow and Rae, ociffer. Just came back from a fight with Iron Man, no need to be alarmed.' Or something wittier, if she could think of it. But she held her tongue.

"Uh, no?"

"Speed limit, you were going 55 in a 35 zone."

"Oh, sorry."

"Yeah, well, I need to see your license and registration."

Crane cut in, "Excuse me, officer? Our friend here has a broken hand, we were simply on the way to the hospital."

"I still need to see your license and regi-… Wait a minute. You're Scarecrow!" The officer paled a moment.

Rae giggled from the backseat, "I can't wait until I get that kinda recognition, Jonny-kins." The officer's attention was brought to the woman, who wiggled her good fingers at him. He turned another shade of white.

Harold figured this was the time to get on with it, it seemed, and pushed on the gas as the officer began to stutter into his radio about spotting the two of them. Rae let out a wicked laugh, slumping in the back seat, attempting to wiggle her bad fingers. Ouch, pain. Yay, endorphins. Crane shook his head, his lips curled at the ends.

Soon, after the officer had appeared to be lost, more lights appeared. Rae began to sweat, watching out the back window. Shots were fired, making Rae squeak. Jonny had grabbed Harold's gun and fired a few shots when Rae was focused on the cars behind them. Rae quickly pulled on her seatbelt, having watched one too many car chases on the television. Jonathan eyed her a moment before turning right in his seat, pulling his belt on as well, not a moment too late.

Harold, despite his ability to drive a van in a car chase, had lost control of the car as they rounded a corner, the car began to turn.

* * *

Rae wasn't sure what happened after that, finding she was waking up in the back of an ambulance. There was a mask on her mouth, the oxygen kind. Voices were vague. She hurt. Damnit, she hadn't been out of the hospital for long and now she was going back?! Wait, if she was like this… How was Jonathan?! Harold?

"J-Jonny…!" She choked out, the ambulance fellow gave her a startled look.

"Mister Crane is in another ambulance, but he'll be fine, Miss. Now, calm down, we'll have you to a hospital soon…" He wasn't very pleased sounding.

Rae didn't care, she probably blew up his cousin or something. Not her fault. Okay a little. She felt loopy, she frowned, what did they put in her? She didn't like this feeling. Hopefully, he didn't purposely make her OD and later claim it was an accident. That would _suck_. She felt her eyelids drifting downwards, looked like it was time for sleepy.

* * *

Memories of the ambulance ride lingered as she woke, leaving her none too surprised to find that she was in a hospital room, handcuffed to the bed. Guards were standing outside of the only exit. She rattled her arms, trying to free herself, frowning upon finding that she was not able to free herself. The cast that now covered her lower arm, hand, and fingers was also annoying. It itched. It itched a lot.

Her eyes caught the sight of the guards again, forcing herself to think about anything other than the itching. She… wanted to know how Jonathan was, how Harold was, if Stark was involved, yes the thought had crossed her mind, and what was going to be done with her. Probably back to Arkham. She needed to get their attention, to figure out the answers to these questions.

"Hey." No response. "Hey!" Rinse, repeat. A sigh, the girl glowered at the door for a moment before letting out a yell. Both turned their heads and immediately entered the room.

"What's wrong?" Dimwitted guard-man spoke up. The other guy gave him a look.

"W-.." It hurt. She didn't feel too horrible, just like she'd been thrown around a room and bumped against every surface inside. Or was thrown against, whatever. "Is Jonathan okay?"

Eyes narrowed. "Mister Crane is doing well, better than you are. He's already been sent to Arkham… Unfortunately, the driver died in the crash."

Rae flinched, becoming quiet. Harold was dead? See, this was why she didn't have lackeys, henchmen, yatta yatta, she'd feel… kinda sad when they died. Unless they were little annoying bastards, then that was a different story. But she liked Harold, even if he had bought those horrible Hello Kitty panties, like Jenn had. Oh, Harold…

Her eyes shifted to the guards, then her handcuffs… "So, when's it my turn to head to Arkham?" As much as that place sucked, it would be better than the hospital.

The guards shifted glances, then the smarter of the two spoke. "Mister Stark wishes to speak to you before any definite plans are made."

Rae's head hit the pillow with an extra bit of force, pushing most of the air out of the standard hospital pillow. He still wanted to know, of course he did. She wasn't going to tell him though, even if he could get her out of Arkham. She could always break out on her own. She didn't need his help.

Speak of the devil, the man was walking in the door, sending a sad glance at the handcuffed hand with the cast. She waved with that hand, forcing the wince away when she did. Outside of the room stood Pepper.

"Alyse…"

"Man-slut, we've already gone through this. I'm _Rae_."

"Rae. Look, I need your help, and I could help you out in return."

"Nope."

"W-what?"

"I said no. N-O spells no. I was even nice enough to spell it out for you."

"Rae, I could make it so you're still Alyse… With no prior run-ins with the law. You help me, I'll pay you, you won't have to worry about working." He ran a hand through his hair, the guards having already gone outside to stand with Pepper. "I can only do these things if you agree and cooperate."

Then there was silence.

Which was broken by a laugh.

"… Sorry, Tony, but I can't do it," The meanspiritness had left her, for she had a genuine smile on her lips. "By cooperate, I suppose you mean to stop being me, doing the bad things that are frowned upon by the general populace, and hand over my secrets, then sit there and be a good girl and be bored with life. I can't do that Tony. Nor will I do it. I'd prefer Arkham."

Tony looked like one of those thermometers in cartoons, when it got too hot and it's head exploded. Only, Tony's head didn't explode. He just walked out and informed the guards and walked off. Later, doctors came back to speak with the guards.

Not too long after that, she was being uncuffed, to be recuffed to a wheelchair. That lead to a police car downstairs. Obviously, she was well enough she didn't need an ambulance transport. She snickered as she was uncuffed and helped into the back of the car.

Now this felt familiar. The drive was quiet, if one ignored the bumbling policemen in the front seats.

And there it was. The building that always, always had a cloud hanging over it, filled to the nose with loonies, and bored her to death.

She couldn't wait until she was able to escape from it again.

The officers helped her out of the back seat and into a different wheelchair, provided by a nurse, and Rae was pushed back into Arkham Asylum.

* * *

I'm sad. Harold's dead.

I liked Harold.

Sad face.

Oh! And I know it's been forever and a few days since I've updated, and I even promised to start updating more… But, life, ya'know?

Anyway, I kinda sorta like this chapter. It's on the line for me.

Tell me what you think of it.

-T.


	5. VeryOdd

Be Prepared

To Be Unprepared

* * *

This drive was not unlike Rae's first trip. It was quiet, she was quiet, and no commotion was caused. Drugs had helped the situation, seeing as she had been given who-knows-what back at the hospital. Something for anxiety, maybe, and definitely something for the pain, though there was light throbbing. It wasn't long before a nurse and a guard were escorting her down a familiar block of cells.

It was quiet for once. A glance proved that the quiet was not from lack of patients. There were patients, each in their little cells, almost like piggies and toes in a pair of socks… Whoa, drugs thinking again. But the point was that the patients were quiet. Were they sleeping? How late was it…? Some of them didn't sleep, or tried not to. Others talked in their sleep, the content of the sleep-talk varied with each person, obviously. But it was absolutely silent.

There was too much in her system for her to give a flying crap. She was led into the cell she had previously occupied. Everything was how she had left it, a clean room, barren of anything of interest, well, mostly, since at that moment all she felt like doing was flopping onto the bed and allowing the comfort of sleep to wash over her.

Instead, the nurse followed her into the room, only letting the prisoner to sit on the bed. The nurse shook her head, glancing at the clipboard she held.

"Before you can get to sleep, I've got to ask you where've you been the past month, Rae." A simple request, really, it was. She let out a snicker. They knew, why did they need her to spoon-feed them the answers they already had? Or did they know? Tony had said he'd make it so she could stay Alyse, no strings attached other than the stop being herself part.

"I don't feel like sharing right now, daaarrlinnn," A half-lidded gaze sent shivers down the nurse's spine.

"You disappeared out of Gotham after the 'event' at Wayne Enterprises, nothing after that, until the crash earlier." So they didn't have the information about Alyse? Fun. Perhaps the paperwork was behind? Surely the police knew by now and were going to share the information with the asylum that kept her?

Rae let herself slump over, her legs still hanging over the side of the bed. A goofy thought ran through her mind, her eyes shutting.

"You're not alone, together we stand, I'll be by your side. You know I'll take your hand," She was singing. In this place, in front of this nurse, to a man a few cells over. Oh well. If she was embarrassed later, she could claim she was on drugs. "When it gets cold and feels like the end, there's no place to go, you know I won't give in. No, I won't give in."

Giggles were breaking the former silence.

"Raelyn-!" The nurse was cut off.

"Keep holding on, 'cause you'll know we'll make it through, make it through…"

Sometimes, it sucked when sleep crept up on a person. Not this time.

* * *

Solitude is what she earned from her little performance. No group therapy, no eating lunch with the other inmates, no rec. time. She was fine with it, though it was probably driving Crane crazy, especially if she had gotten that song stuck in his head. Rae bet he was having a mental fit over the lyrics, since the last time she sang with a meani-… well, since she sang before Wayne Enterprises, anyway.

She glanced at the cast that was limiting what she could do. Writing was difficult, seeing as it was her writing hand, so she had to become accustomed to using her non-dominate hand. Same for other things that usually involved the dominant hand. Eating, moving hair out of one's face, etc. And it itched. A lot. A total nuisance it what it was.

Speaking of nuisances, her one-on-one doctor had been changed, something she did not like, something she verbally shared each session they had. Speaking of, a guard had arrived to escort her to her one-on-one session while the rest attended group.

The most annoying part about the new doctor was the fact that he treated her as if she were a child. A child with ADHD, or something.

"Miss Vail, please, sit."

"Can't do anything else, can I?" She grumbled to herself, making herself comfortable.

"Now, Miss Vail…" A snap after the doctor had caught her eyes wandering. "Please pay attention, Miss Vail." Her eyes met with the doctor's and narrowed dangerously. She was a supposedly crazed criminal who had harmed who-knew how many people, if not killed, and this man was treating her like a child, as he had been doing in his sessions with her. "I would like to speak to you about your past again… I fear you might have repressed memories when you were a child that could have changed your views of the world…"

Her brow quirked. This fellow also seemed to want to blame everything on her parents, or, perhaps, a teacher, a babysitter, someone to blame for her actions of the day. He did look rather young, perhaps he was a new doctor on the team and she was one of the… less active ones during the one-on-one time. A new doctor could have been assigned to a different block, with less hostile people, but no, she got him, he got her, and she felt like taking a knife to his face.

"Look, I already told you that's not the case… You've read my files, I'm sure. I was not traumatized as a child, teenager, or young adult. If you keep pressing this subject, I swear to Zeus, Hades, and any other ancient god that'll listen that you'll go missing!" Her voice had been raised, but she had not moved from her spot. The look in her eye must have been enough, because the man had switched the subject, muttering something about coming back to it later.

* * *

The session was shortened a great deal after that, and Rae was escorted back to her cell. A small smile crept onto her lips, thinking that she might have made an improvement on her new doctor's sessions with her. Let him ask her about her past again and she'd test how good her aim was with her left hand.

Her day was fairly boring from that point forth, until a guard arrived to take her to the lunchroom. So she had earned her 'freedom' back, or was the allotted time up on how long she was to stay by her lonesome? Oh well, she had a plan of what she wanted to do.

The guard left her at the door, letting her move to go get her own food without the help of a trained ape. There were eyes on her, yes, she knew, she also knew whose eyes were on her. Taking the tray of food of some sort, she hadn't paid it much mind, she led herself to the table Crane occupied, along with Harley, and Ivy.

Strange, no Joker.

She took the spot next to Jonathan, nodding a greeting to the former trio, they reciprocated her response with their own nods. Jonathan twitched in his seat.

"Rae, about that son-"

And her lips on his cheek cut him off. Each braced for an impact, but none came from the other parties at the table, nor from one another. Rae leaned back, then pressed a chaste kiss to his lips.

Rae scooted a bit away from the brown haired man, who was just as flushed as she was.

"Whatta way to cut someone off, aye, Ivy?" Harley let out a giggle. Rae wondered if the girl had forgotten the 'grudge' the blonde had on her, then let it go.

The red head snorted in response, a faint smirk on her lips, "They'd make a cute couple, if they didn't look like brother and sister thanks to that dye-job."

Rae flung a pea at Ivy, retaliation! Ivy dodged it easily and kept her smug smirk.

The flinger of the pea glanced to Jonathan, quirking a brow, a faint smirk on her lips. She and him didn't speak for the rest of the mealtime, though he would turn a cute shade of pink when she began to hum the song from her first night back.

The pair rose and delivered their trays to the washer. On their way to the exits, Rae leaned over and whispered something in Jonathan's ear. A moment later Jonathan jumped and Rae was snickering to herself.

"What did she do?" Questioned Harley, Ivy behind her, giving him an inquiring look.

Jonathan flushed, "The crazy woman tickled me!"

* * *

I –was- going to have Rae grab his butt, but that's just too much for one chapter. Plus, sneak tickles are the greatest.

Anyway, this chapter sort of sucked, so sorry about that.


	6. Return Of

Life seems dull,

Until there's a boom.

* * *

Rae and Crane had been forced into different schedules, for all but group-therapy time, due to the supposed performance that the duo gave in the cafeteria. Rae would've objected that a couple kisses and a light tickle were not a show, perhaps she would've invited whoever was listening to come see a real show, the next time her and Jonathan got together, had she felt daring at the time. But back to the issue at hand, Rae and Jonathan weren't really allowed contact, except for group, where, even then, they were watched with scrutinizing eyes.

Things seemed to… jumble up though, one day, when gunshots rang out, from the front of the asylum, near the entrance. This had all of the members of their cellblock curious and on edge. What if a parent/family member/lover/child of someone they killed were there to get revenge? True, if this were the average person with the average equipment, they would be taken care of easily. It was a bit of a shock though, someone breaking in, as opposed to out. The villains thought nothing of it until the gunshots grew nearer.

Then came the laughing.

Harley visibly perked up, the majority of the cellblock then rolling their eyes.

Suddenly, the gunfire stopped, and a voice echoed over the intercom. Rae was surprised to discover that the asylum –had- an intercom.

"H-ulloh, kiddies. It's m_e_." Rae frowned, practically hearing his grin in his voice. Since when was he out? She had noticed him missing not too long ago, right about the time she 'earned her freedom'. He hadn't been to group, either… and security had been bumped up. Too bad she hadn't put this together before. "The B_a_ts wasn't too, uh, _in_-terested in playing with m_e_…" A pause. "S_oo_, I c_ame_ to play with yo-_ooh_."

That was when Rae decided to try her damnedest to get out of that cell. Immediately, she was scrunched against the wall near the door, fingering the wall to try and get bits loose. The cells opened by a card being swiped through a slit on the outside of the door. Rae figured that some wires must have been through the wall, since the night Jonathan first escaped, with her there and escaping shortly after, it hadn't seemed like each door had been opened individually during those situations. Perhaps there was a main slit at the end of the hallway, in case of emergencies, fires and such, and that had to be connected to each of the cells, right? She hoped so.

Chatter was beginning to rise in volume as the inmates tried to figure out what to do, how to get around the extra measures taken to keep the criminals in that were put in after each escape. The stakes had been upped, as they all knew, since the Joker has escaped, and no one had been able to get around the newest system. Rae almost let out an excited noise as the panel of the wall gave way to her now bleeding fingers, some of the blood was smeared on her cast, she held it in though, not wanting to give herself away.

"Now, here's a… problem for you to sol-_veh_. Not really a problem… More like a guessing game!" A cackle from the clown-faced madman. "It's simple… You n_eed_ to _fig_-yer out what four-let_t_er word I'm _thu_-inking of before the hour's up!" A four-letter word? Oh gods no. There were far too many words in the English language that had four letters.

Rae began to pull at the wires she found past a pipe in the wall.

Pipe was a four-letter word, was that it? Was his evil plan to go around beating them all with pipes? And why only an hour's time? Others were speaking their guesses, none seeming to fit the clown's insane nature.

"Guns, could it be guns?"

"I think not."

"Grave?"

"That's five letters, Harl."

"Whoops!"

"Dead?"

"Fear!"

"No, Crane."

"Well, you aren't suggesting anything, Ivy."

"Bats?"

Rae let out a faint groan, not sure if it was from the ache of her fingers or of the guesses. Were microphones set up to hear their guesses? Were all these suggestions in vain? She didn't doubt that the hospital set up microphones to listen to them, no matter how much of an invasion of privacy that was. They were criminals, criminals that kept escaping, they didn't deserve privacy. Well, that wasn't her perspective on things, but damned if it wasn't the hospital's. Grand. Now she had to watch herself when she joked about anything in Arkham.

A light curse came from her as her fingers slipped on the wires, grumping that blood made things slippery. Her eyes grew wide for a moment, before she pressed herself up against the door, trying to see down the hallway. No, he wouldn't… how long had passed already?

"-ing?"

"I-!… I think I know what it is!"

Silence in the corridor.

"Well!?" Ivy was getting impatient. "What is it?"

"Boom."

And now the silence was, for lack of better words, booming.

A laugh from the intercom, "Corr-ect! Give the girl a _pruh_-ize!" The sound of things being moved around. "Oooh, too ba-_ahd_. Seems we're _ouh-t_ of _pruh_-izes. _Suh_-orry!" A snicker. "There's only… six minutes and forty-three…-_two_… seconds left, time to scad_ood_le. I'll let myself out…" The rouges were beginning to protest. "It'd be lonely with only me and Batsy… so, try to get out in _one_ pie_ce_!"

Wires, she could work with wires, but she usually had more time! Time was not her friend. Nor was it the friend of any of the other inmates at the asylum. The other inmates were cursing, trying to figure out their own way out.

Rae tried to think of who in this block would possibly be working on the same idea, who was techy. Jervis Tetch, sure, because of his mind-control bands… who else? Perhaps Crane, he did create a contraption to spray his toxin, unless it was one of those Spider-Man toys in Wal*Mart that a child could buy and just toyed around with the content… She'd have to look into that later, really, she would. The thought was very humorous, but she had to focus. Wires, wires.

Tick.

Tock.

Tick.

Damn clown had left the intercom on, a clock near the microphone, the sound echoing down the hall, a not-so-subtle warning of what was to come if they didn't get the heck out.

Her eyes wavered a moment as she came to a wire she hadn't toyed with yet. Pull it? Why not, what did she have to lose… beside, well, the whole life thing? She held back a smirk at the thought, mind wandering back to the event on top of Wayne Enterprises…. Oh well, she had to take the plunge, right?

She pulled the wire. Nothing happened. She hurried to her door, pulling at it, but it didn't give. A shout of anguish came from the girl as she slid down against the door, bowing her head. Great, she was screwed, they all were screwed. They were all going to die because the frickin' Batman wouldn't give the Clown enough attention.

Tick.

Tock…

That dreadful sound was drowning out the voices of the other inmates.

Then…

A shout of surprise came from the end of the cellblock, nearly a sound of accusation, had she really cared to label it further, but one didn't really have time for further inspection of a cellmate's noises when fearing for one's life. Lifting herself from the floor, she peered out, curiosity getting the better of her.

Hey, at least it wouldn't be the death of her, right?

Well, it could be.

Batman was standing in the hallway.

He had a card, probably from a worker, either from a living one or off of the corpse of one the Clown's victims.

And now the others were leaving their cells, their doors had opened.

Her's had not.

Jonathan appeared outside of her cell, trying with what appeared to be all his might to open the door. Damn, she just had to screw around with the wires, huh? A feeble smile came to her lips as he gave her a look that showed exactly how powerless he felt. Panic was beginning to set in and she couldn't focus on his words, her eyes squinting as his lips, as if that would help her to understand better.

Batman was there in an instant, probably hurrying Jonathan along. Jonathan gave the masked man a scathing look before gazing back to meet Rae's eyes. Rae forced her lips into a weak smile before she leaned to press a chaste kiss towards him via the glass of the door. She pulled back and gave him a nod. The brown haired villain returned the gesture stiffly, looking back many times as he moved to leave the cellblock.

Batman began to work on the door, using a strange contraption that was apparently a part of his suit.

Tick.

Tock.

* * *

He didn't want to leave her in the Bat's hands, but there was little he could do in the situation, and despite Scarecrow's own affinity to the woman, he was more for self-preservation. There was a bit of a clenching in his chest when he had left the cellblock, Rae and the Batman no long in his line of vision.

Outside were many police, his comrades, if they could be called that, and other patients had already been detained and in the back of police cars. An officer was making his way for Jonathan when the toxicless villain turned from the officer to gaze at Arkham in all its wonder. He had to go back and… do something!

The officer, M. Reid, snatched the man and forced him to the grassy ground before he could run.

"Stay still!" Reid then began to spout off about how he and his fellow patients were to be transferred temporarily until further notice. Right, because they could just come back after the building exploded…

The building. Beautiful pale blue eyes shot open and at the asylum. Rae hadn't come out yet, there were no shouts of surprise as the Batman exited, no lights were pointed toward the sky in hopes of finding the caped crusader. They were still inside. Rae was still inside.

"Let me go, you fool!" The thin man struggled but to no avail, the officer's weight was more than enough to keep him down, though Reid couldn't have weighed more than the average man…

An eruption.

Near the back of the asylum.

Then several more throughout.

Rae and Batman were still inside.

Rae was still inside.

The officer lifted the now kicking and screaming man, Jonathan's words were hard to make out, and forced him further from Arkham Asylum.

Rae was still inside.

The detained man, when had the officer put Jonathan in handcuffs?, became worse, eyes darkening in his efforts to escape. "INSIDE! SHE- LET GO! NEEDS HEL- LET GO!" His voice was going hoarse as he continued to explain, in his frantic, panicked way…

The explosions stopped, but still, no one emerged from the wreckage that was only moments before Arkham Asylum.

The man began to go limp in the officer's arms.

…

…Rae was still inside…

* * *

Oh, I'm a jerk. I haven't updated for forever, then I end this chapter like this? I actually do have an idea for the next chapter, so here's hoping it'll come quicker than this one did. Had massive writer's block when it came to this chapter.


End file.
